In Tempo, the titular grasshopper character Tempo and his friend, Katy, star on The Major Minor Show as they climb the top of the tower to defeat King Dirge.

The stages are presented as performances on a musical variety show like Soul Train.

The Japanese publication Micom BASIC Magazine ranked Tempo eighth in popularity in its June 1995 issue, and it received a 7.2222/10 score in a 1995 readers' poll conducted by the Japanese Sega Saturn Magazine, ranking among 32X and Sega Mega Drive titles at the number 256 spot.

[12][13][14] GamePro's Captain Squideo highlighted the game's dazzling background graphics, rich soundtrack, and low difficulty for novices, but noted the lack of originality in the gameplay.

[15] Next Generation assessed that "none of [its] good qualities keep Tempo from missing the beat and being yet another poor 32X effort".